Brand New Days
by RobinxRaven writer
Summary: When Yuki gets freed from the seal, he goes on a journey to find his old friends. But in the ten years he's been gone, the world has changed drastically, and he isn't sure where his place in it is anymore.
1. Elizabeth's Journey

A/N

Hello ladies and gentlemen, welcome to my first real attempt at a Persona fic. This will be focused on Yuki and Elizabeth reuniting with the P3 cast after Yuki gets freed from the seal. I'm also trying to write Elizabeth closer to her P3 incarnation since she's a more 'calm' kind of crazy rather than how she acts in later entries. This will mostly be focused on the relationship between Yuki and Elizabeth, and I will be ignoring the P4Arena games because it makes more since for this story, and until Atlas stops being cowards and gives us the spin off featuring Elle-P saving her wooden door that we deserve, I'll do what I want.

An important note, I had to write most of this on my phone to kill a day at work, so if you notice any egregious errors please let me know.

~January 31, 2010~

"We will soon reach our destination."

In hindsight, she should've chosen better parting words. But she had to keep up appearances in front of her master, and it had been Elizabeth herself who had insisted their relationship come to an end. Yuki had seemed disheartened but understanding when she'd broken things off a few weeks ago, and ever since then she'd only seen him during his brief visits to the Velvet Room while preparing for the final battle, and they hardly spoke at all. Things had been awkward, and if this was going to be the last time she was going to see him, Elizabeth couldn't help but regret not saying something more personal to him.

The elevator doors opened, and a brilliant light engulfed the room. When it faded, Yuki was gone. "Truly marvelous." Igor said into the silence. "Don't you think so?"

Elizabeth swallowed hard. "Very few will be able to match him." She conceded, hoping there was no bitterness in her voice to reflect how she felt. _"Why does such a fate have to befall him?"_ She asked herself. Through what little she'd learned of his past while on their dates, Elizabeth knew that his life hadn't been happy or fair. In fact it was only through meeting the other Persona users and finding a cause to fight for had his life found meaning. Why did it have to end when he had just found happiness?

~March 29, 2010~

"Elizabeth, stay here. Another ordeal will soon be upon us, and I must speak to my master to get ready."

With that, Igor shimmered and then vanished without a sound, leaving Elizabeth alone in the dimly lit elevator. Standing immediately and making her way to the exit, Elizabeth took a deep breath before doing something neither of her sisters or brother had ever done before: disobeyed a direct order from their master. But it didn't matter to her; there were far more important things she had to do other than sit in silence like she'd just done for the past two months.

Stepping out of Paulownia Mall's back area and ignoring the looks people were giving her, she made her way across town to the location she'd written down many weeks in advance. After nearly 45 minutes of travelling, she'd arrived at the small plot of land where Yuki's family stone was standing. The grave looked as though it had been recently cleaned, as there were no offerings present.

Sighing, Elizabeth cleared her throat and began speaking into the silence. "I am sorry I was not present at your funeral. I could've gone, even if it had been against my master's wishes, but I decided it would be for the best to let your friends say their goodbyes first." She took a deep breath as she tried to get her thoughts in order. "Soon, your friends will be going through challenging times. I will do what I can to aid them, just as I did for you. And after that, I promise to do what I can to free you from this fate." She put her hands together, offered a silent prayer for Yuki and his friends, and then left the graveyard, wiping at the few tears that were falling down her cheeks. When she returned to the Velvet Room, Igor was still gone, and Elizabeth breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't know how to leave without invoking her master's wrath, but she'd made a promise and she intended to keep it. So as she took er seat in the silence, she began to think.

~April 1, 2010~

"So, he didn't simply seal Nyx away, he's acting as the barrier between Nyx and Erebus so humanity cannot call down its own destruction… How interesting…" Igor said quietly. "That was quite unexpected! I hadn't thought that's what had transpired."

"It seems Yuki is full of surprises." Elizabeth conceded, her eyes turned towards the ceiling as she thought of the great seal out in the vastness of space. "I wonder how one man is capable of such a feat."

"It was not his feat alone, remember? Through the bonds he'd created, the joy in life he had found, he drew strength from all those he encountered in order to perform that miracle." Igor explained.

_"How do these bonds between people work?"_ She asked herself, as the sounds of Aigis talking with the members of S.E.E.S. drifted through the elevator, her request to return to school being granted by Mitsuru before the team left the dorm for the final time. _"How do they grant one the power to perform miracles? I am still naive to many of these things, despite being a ruler of power. Perhaps in understanding them, I can find a way to free Yuki from his fate."_ Elizabeth's thoughts were cut short when her siblings entered the room. "Hello, sisters. Theo. It's good to see you all again."

Seats materialized in the room so everyone could sit down comfortably, and the room itself changed from an elevator to that of a simple living room, lacking any windows to look outside since the Velvet Room did not exist in reality.

"It seems you've had an incredible guest recently." Margaret spoke first, crossing one leg on top of the other. "Please, tell me more about him."

Elizabeth did, explaining everything she could about Yuki's journey without going into too much detail about their dates when she got to those parts of the story, and not even mentioning their last date together at all. When she finished talking about Yuki, she explained Aigis' story to her siblings as well.

"It seems like you've had quite the experience." Theo remarked.

"The power of the Universe…" Lavenza muttered.

"I must say, compared to the last several guests we've had, this Yuki boy seems to be quite a few levels ahead of them all." Margaret said.

"Indeed. In all my years, I've never had such a wonderful guest." Igor finished.

Elizabeth sat silently, eyes cast to the ground and a forlorn expression on her face. When the room went silent, she looked up and saw everyone staring at her. "What is it?"

"You seem troubled." Lavenza pointed out.

Elizabeth scoffed lightly. "I am just wondering why he had to die. It seems like such a cruel twist of fate to end his life when he's finally found the answer to it." She told everyone.

"It isn't our place to determine when or why humans must pass away." Igor reminded her. "Our only duty is to assist them on their journey."

"All humans pass away eventually. It doesn't concern us when they do since we don't live among them. We've been around since they first ate the apple and we'll be around for a lot longer than any of them ever will be." Lavenza added. "Why bother thinking about it?"

~May 2010~

As was usually the case when Igor was present, the siblings would fall silent after conversation was spent and the room would become deathly still. It never dawned on Elizabeth how much she disliked these stretches of silences that could go on for months or years in the human world. Perhaps it was because she'd never asked a previous guest to take her out into their world before, but all she could think about was the places that Yuki had taken her, and how much she yearned to go with him again into places unknown. Of the various cultures, cities, towns, shops, and restaurants to visit, there was a near infinite world of possibilities out there, and it was all gone now that her guest was deceased. As the silence dragged on, Elizabeth wondered how different her fate was from Yuki's; trapped in a single place as she mindlessly went about her purpose.

~August 2010~

"There is no purpose for such a thing here." Igor stated, his ever present smile hiding his exasperated tone.

"But it wouldn't hurt either." Elizabeth argued back. "Besides, our guests come here quite often. I'm sure they would appreciate some familiar scenery and-"

"The answer still is no. Be silent." Igor commanded, his eyes flaring as he turned to glare at Elizabeth.

Her hands clenched into fists on her knees, and she glared silently at the ground as her heartbeat pounded in her ears. _"I cannot forget him, yet I have so little to remember him by. How am I supposed to cherish the memory of someone so dear to me when I can't even convince my master to heed such a simple request?"_

~October 2010~

"Perhaps Elizabeth was right. Igor should've put a horizontal bar in here to help alleviate the boredom." Lavenza mumbled.

"I know, let's see if we can come up with a new song to sing!" Theo offered to the group.

Igor had vanished nearly a week ago, and ever since then the four siblings had been left to wait for his return.

"Elizabeth, you said that your last guest took you into the human world several times. Did you happen to learn of any songs while you were out?" Theo asked. He'd been trying the hardest to bring Elizabeth into conversations, because it was obvious to everyone that she was upset and yet none of them knew what to do. It wasn't like Elizabeth to be upset over the fate of a past guest.

"No. He did listen to music a lot, but I never asked him what he listened to." She mumbled, barely audible even in the quiet room.

"Ah. How unfortunate." Margaret responded a little awkwardly.

Slowly, Elizabeth stood and exhaled, stretching her arms overhead as she did so. Then she made her way to the door.

"Where are you going?" Margaret asked, her tone much more serious.

When Elizabeth turned around, she saw Margaret coldly staring her down while her siblings gave her fearful looks as they stood at the eldest siblings side. "I'm leaving. I'm going to save Yuki." She stated bluntly, ignoring the looks she was receiving.

"You can't save him. He's dead." Margaret replied, leaving any warmth out of her voice.

"No, he's trapped." Elizabeth corrected. "His life force still exists out there. That means there is a way to return him to normal."

"And what about Erebus? Removing the seal will let Erebus reach Nyx and mankind will be destroyed. You aren't thinking things through." Theodore tried to reason with her.

"Erebus only forms because mankind wishes for death. All I have to do is change mankind's wish and then Nyx will continue to slumber undisturbed."

"So, you'll break all the rules we abide by in order to exist just for the sake of one man?" Lavenza questioned, eyes wide in disbelief.

"To Hell with the rules!" Elizabeth yelled back, causing Theo and Lavenza to recoil in shock. "I've made up my mind. I will not remain here any longer against my will!" Before her siblings could try to argue or reason with her, Elizabeth left, the stunned looks and heavy silence the last interaction she would have with her siblings for many years.

~January 2011~

"Yuki…"

Elizabeth raised a hand and gently touched the stone cheek of her former lover, her tears rolling down her face where they fell into the void of space and immediately evaporated. "I promised I would save you. I _will_ keep that promise. Just give me some time."

She sniffed and forced a small smile, before turning and meant to make her way back to Earth, but something caught her attention. The darkness seemed to shimmer and ripple, then a large beast emerged. "Hmph. To have reformed so soon…" She opened her persona compendium and turned to look back over her shoulder. "Allow me to send it away this time." Turning forwards as Thanatos appeared behind her, Elizabeth smirked playfully and then flew forward into battle.

It had ended so quickly Elizabeth stopped to wonder if maybe she'd gone overboard. "I guess I am a tougher foe than a normal human is…" She reasoned. "But that's not important. As long as I can banish it for a time, I can ease Yuki's burden."

With that, she made her way back to Earth.

~March 2012~

"My, even I felt that one." Elizabeth said as she stood on the Moon's surface, gazing up at the Earth. "I wonder if that was from a new group of Persona users, or if Yuki's friends are in trouble again." Elizabeth tilted her head to the side. "Oh well. I just defeated Erebus once more, and that's what matters to me."

A twinge of regret went through Elizabeth as she wondered which of her siblings was assisting the guests since she'd decided to abandon her duties, but she forced the thought out of her head. It wasn't the first time thoughts of her family had come to her, and most likely wouldn't be the last. It had been especially worrying for the first few weeks after she'd left, thinking that her siblings would suddenly appear to drag her back to the Velvet Room. But as those weeks had given way to months and now two years had passed, she was a little more at ease. If her siblings were going to come after her, they would've done so immediately, she reasoned. For now, it seemed she was free to go about her journey, and she opened a doorway to Earth to resume it.

The small detour to ease Yuki's burden was over with.

~2014~

"Just a little longer, I promise."

Erebus was fading beneath her once again, and Elizabeth left quickly. It was never easy returning to the seal, but lately she was having trouble staying for any longer than was necessary after defeating Erebus. It wasn't the real reason she was leaving so quickly, but she rationalized it as a desire to get back to saving Yuki when really, it was Elizabeth's guilt over her lack of progress on that front that was causing her to run away.

~2019~

"Perhaps I've undertaken a task I had no way of actually completing." Elizabeth muttered into the vacuum of space.

She was hugging her knees to her chest and had her back to the seal, her unfocused gaze on the vast expanse of stars in front of her. "I've spent years searching for any information, any esoteric tome or long lost artifact that I could use to change humanity just enough so you wouldn't have to stay here. But I've come up with nothing. The only one who might be able to help would be my master, and if I ever returned he would surely destroy me where I stood." She looked up, turning around to look at the seal. "This can't be the way things are supposed to be…" She sniffled and dropped her head so she her forehead was resting on her knees. "If there is a desire to change things, then things will change. You changed fate for all of mankind, so why can't I change the fate of just one person? I have no idea what to do…" Elizabeth's shoulders shuddered as the tears started flowing, her voice breaking as she started sobbing. _"The years never felt this long before… How much longer until I can finally do something, anything?"_

Elizabeth's cries continued to be the only sound in the silence for a while until a faraway noise caused her to snap upright. Summoning her compendium and readying for a fight, she waited for Erebus to appear.

Then, she heard it again. Looking around, Elizabeth scanned the area for any spacial warping, any odd shadow formations blocking the stars, but saw nothing. _"It's about time for Erebus to reform anyways… It's been gone for nearly a year…"_ She continued to scan the area for the beast, but saw nothing. The noise echoed around her again, and Elizabeth noticed movement out of the corner of her eye. But it wasn't Erebus making that noise, it was the seal itself; it was shaking itself apart. She watched as rocks tumbled down the massive frame and then vanished into the void, then large cracks began spreading all over the seal itself before it exploded into a flash of white light that was intense enough that even Elizabeth had to shield her eyes.

When she lowered her hands, there was no evidence that the great seal had just been before her, no lingering debris or energy was floating around the void around them.

It was just Yuki floating silently in the darkness of space, looking just as he had ten years ago.

For a moment, Elizabeth was just silent, completely shocked by what had just occurred. Then her senses came back to her, and she leapt forward, wrapping her arms around Yuki and opening a doorway back to Earth. They fell, and Elizabeth twisted in midair so she would take the brunt of the impact. They hit the ground and slid a few feet, and Elizabeth shut her eyes as she tried to focus on keeping Yuki safe. When they came to a stop, Elizabeth let her grip slacken enough, and her heart jumped in her chest when Yuki pushed himself off of her and sat up. "Yu...ki?" She whispered hoarsely.

He blinked, confusion plainly written on his face as he tilted his head to the side. "Elizabeth? What's going on?"


	2. Yuki Gets Freed

_"Hey there. It's been awhile, hasn't it?"_

_It hadn't felt like too long since Yuki had last heard that voice. A couple of months before graduation, he'd heard Nyx telling his friends that he would return to sleep out in space._

_"You've felt it, haven't you? That… strange, eerie feeling from time to time, right?"_

_Yes, he knew what it was. The only thing that would or even could stir his consciousness was that overwhelming mass of negativity. The first time, he'd resisted it and it had eventually vanished. Occasionally, it would vanish before encroaching upon him at all, but other times it would manage to encroach upon him, surround him, threaten to swallow him and destroy him, and he'd have to resist again, until it would vanish once more._

_"Have you noticed how long it's been gone? Whatever was creating, it's probably stopped. Well, at least for now."_

_Maybe. Maybe not._

_"You don't have to stay here any longer, you know. You can leave and return to your life."_

_Even with all of his time spent in darkness and most of that unaware of it, he knew he couldn't _just _return to his life. He'd lived, and he died, and now he was here._

_"But you're not really dead, are you?"_

_Yuki paused, his mind almost slipping back into that quiet darkness._

_"Your life force is still right here, acting as the seal. Well, the barrier really. But with nothing to keep out, your life force is just… sitting here."_

_Maybe. But I can't leave you alone._

_Nyx laughed. "You don't need to worry about me. I always stay out here when I'm not being called."_

_Yuki might have laughed if he had a physical form to laugh with. It was an obvious trick; lying probably (clearly) wasn't Nyx's strong suit._

_"I'm not lying." If it was possible for an incredibly ancient being to sound childish, it did. "And if I was, you could always return to being the seal, couldn't you? That power is always with you." Before Yuki could respond, Nyx continued. "Anyway, I'm going back to sleep. If you want to stay and sleep too, you can. But it won't hurt my feelings if you choose to leave."_

_With that, Nyx's presence vanished and silence settled in._

_Normally, when nothing was happening, Yuki's conscious would fade as well and time would pass without his awareness of it. This time, he was still aware of himself as the silence stretched on and on. And on and on and on. It didn't take long for it to become maddening._

_This is why I always wore headphones._

_It's trying to trick me into leaving. But it's gone. It's waiting to take the first chance it can get. It's gone, so is the other presence. I can't leave it alone. It left me alone. It went back to sleep, I can't sleep. _

_If it was trying to trick me, why would it tell me I could seal it away again? _

_Could I really do it again?_

_Yuki tried to will himself back into the empty sleep he was used to (and wondered how he could be used to something he didn't know how to experience), but nothing happened. The harder he tried it, the harder sleep seemed to slip away. Enough time passed for his mind to start drifting from focus on sleep to memories of his life; time spent transferring from school to school, meeting Yukari and Mitsuru, joining S.E.E.S., the journey through Tartarus…_

_The thoughts of his friends caused a feeling of longing to well up inside him, and he sighed as he looked out at the night sky. Then, a feeling of confusion overcame him; since when could he see the night sky? Or sigh?_

Those thoughts quickly turned into panic as he was tackled, then the night sky vanished and was replaced with the mildly warm afternoon sky. When he came to a stop and the person holding him let go slightly, he pushed himself up and looked around. The scenery was almost immediately identified; the chainlink fence, the windmills, the bridge in the distance… he was on the rooftop of Gekkoukan High.

"Yu...ki?" Came a hoarse whisper from beneath him.

Looking down, that initial feeling of confusion returned tenfold as he asked aloud, "Elizabeth? What's going on?"

The elevator attendant was on the ground, looking at him like… he'd been gone for ten years and then suddenly walked backed into her life. She sat up quickly, but her hand reached forward hesitantly to gently cup his cheek. He was about to ask if she'd been crying when he saw her bloodshot eyes and messy hair, but she pulled him into a hug before he could say anything. Yuki returned the hug as she started crying softly, clutching at his jacket and resting her weight fully against him. As he rubbed small circles onto the girls back and waited for her to calm down, Yuki could only wonder why Elizabeth was here. The past few weeks had been nothing but forced smiles and awkward silences as their informal relationship had come to an end… However long ago that had been, Yuki had to remind himself. He had done his best to ignore his disappointment, to focus on the final battle but even so, the idea that he wouldn't be able to see Elizabeth's amazed looks as he showed her around town or be able to answer any more of her naive questions had left him with no small amount of sorrow. He pulled back when Elizabeth's shuddering stopped and her breathing evened out, and rested both hands on her shoulders. "Are you okay?"

Elizabeth laughed, wiping her eyes as she responded with, "I should be the one to ask you that."

Yuki smiled. "Yeah I'm okay." For a moment, a million questions ran through his mind, but he decided to stand up, helping Elizabeth to her feet as well. He took a moment to collect himself, then asked, "Elizabeth, what's going on? Why am I back?"

Her smile fell a little as she answered, telling him about Erebus and how he'd suddenly been freed from the seal for seemingly no reason right in front of her.

_"Did Nyx free me? Could it even do something like that? Or was it just because Nyx said I wasn't needed and _could _leave that I was freed? Did I do it subconsciously, or did it happen naturally? Surely me missing everyone wasn't enough on its own to free me…"_

His silence must have gone on for too long as he wondered what was really going on, because Elizabeth gave him a worried look. "Is everything okay?" She tilted her head to one side as she rose on her toes to get a better look at him.

"It's fine. I was just thinking about the best way to get down from the roof without alerting anyone." He responded quickly. _"And I don't know what to do now that I'm back."_

"Please, allow me."

Before Yuki could ask what she was about to do, she raised her hand and the two of them began to float off the ground. He let out an involuntary cry as they then moved over the fence and then descended, slowing to a stop before hitting the ground. He twisted in the air so his feet were beneath him and then he was lowered the last couple of feet to the ground. "I didn't know you could fly." He looked at Elizabeth with a mixture of awe and curiosity, wondering what else she could do. It wasn't like she had done many magical things in front of him previously.

"Well, to be technical about things, it isn't flight. It's more like… controlled descent." She replied, rolling her hand in the air as she explained. "The closest experience to flight I can replicate is hovering a few feet in the air, but that lacks the actual wonder and desire for flying, doesn't it?" She asked as they began walking away from the school.

"It would be a neat party trick, I guess…" He mumbled as he took out his phone, unfolding it to be greeted by a 'no service' message. "Elizabeth?" He asked, turning to as they stopped. "Do you remember our very first date, when you and I went to Paulownia Mall?" At her nod, he continued. "Then, you remember how you threw a million Yen into the fountains there? You wouldn't happen to have any more coin pouches like that, would you?" Yuki held up his phone, then gestured to the surrounding area, where the train station and the rest of Port Island was. "We won't be able to get very far if we're broke." It didn't seem right to ask for money right away, but all of his savings he'd collected from selling junk that he'd come across in Tartarus had been split evenly between his friends when he'd died. It was the agreement they had all come to regarding a lot of things; they were all closer to one another than they were most family members, so the named beneficiaries on the accounts were each other. It was grim, but their whole situation at the time had been grim.

"Ta-da!" Elizabeth exclaimed as she produced another bulging coin purse. "This should last us a while! I had stowed a few away when I first began my journey."

Yuki smiled and shook his head. "Alright, first things first: we need to find a hotel to stay at while I try to contact my friends. It isn't exactly easy for a dead man and magical girl to just jump into society, so we'll need all the help we can get." He received a nod from Elizabeth, and the two set off for Port Island.

~One Hour Later~

"One room, please." Yuki addressed the man behind the counter.

The pot bellied older gentlemen looked up from his magazine, studied the duo for a moment, and frowned. "No." Then he returned to his magazine.

Yuki sighed. He turned to Elizabeth and motioned to the bag. "We have cash." He said.

The man looked up. "We only accept debit cards." And then looked back down.

Yuki rolled his eyes, reaching into the purse and finding the right type of coin currency. "We have _a lot_ of cash." He said, setting down two stacks of 500 yen coins. The man looked at the stacks, then stared at Yuki for a long, awkward moment, until Yuki pulled out more coins.

"Here." He took the money and handed Yuki a key. "Keep it down, you two. If I get any noise complaints, I'm calling the cops and telling them you snuck in."

"Thank you very much." Elizabeth said when Yuki left without a word. She followed him out of the lobby before asking, "Why would he lie to the police? We purchased the room legitimately, didn't we?"

"Because a boy and a girl getting a hotel room together in the seedy part of town is…"

"My, how scandalous!" Elizabeth gasped as a wild grin spread across her face after she pieced the meaning together. "To think, you would bring an innocent maiden to such an abode!"

"You're not any more innocent than I am." Yuki pointed out, opening the door to their room and stepping inside. It was about as underwhelming as a cheap hotel room could've been; the only reason he chose this hotel and not a nicer one was because there was no way a more expensive hotel was going to allow a teenager wearing a school uniform to check in with a girl by himself. "Well, let's get comfortable. We'll probably be here a couple of days."

Elizabeth sat down on the edge of the bed and looked at Yuki, who let his shoulders fall. He crossed the room and sat next to Elizabeth, who turned to him expectantly. "Elizabeth… what were you doing at the seal?" He kept his tone even; he didn't want to sound like he was mad at Elizabeth for his newfound freedom when he wasn't even sure why he was free to begin with. Truthfully, he wasn't sure how to act around her right now. She seemed happy that he was back, but the last time they had spoken they'd left on uncertain terms at best.

Her smile fell a little and her shoulders tensed slightly, but the cheer in her voice was the same as always. "I was checking on you! If Erebus had done any damage to the seal, mankind would be at risk. But you were still in tip top condition, so no worries!" She explained quickly.

Yuki frowned. "I thought you said you couldn't leave the Velvet Room without Igor's permission."

"Oh, what Igor doesn't know doesn't hurt him."

"Then should I take you back-"

"No!" Elizabeth exclaimed as she stood up suddenly. "My apologies…" She mumbled meekly before sitting beside Yuki again. She exhaled and took a moment to collect her thoughts, trying to summon up the courage to say what she needed to say. For nearly ten years she waited and for exactly this, and now that it was here, she couldn't let the moment get away. "I... abandoned my duties, and am no longer a servant if the Velvet Room. The reason for this is because…. after spending time with you, learning more about your world and growing closer to you, I couldn't close my heart to the things I was feeling. I had fallen for you, Yuki, and after learning that you were trapped at the edge of existence, I went on a journey to destroy Erebus permanently and free you from your fate. But I was unable to do so no matter what I tried, and then- then you suddenly appeared, and you know the rest." She finished quickly, looking down at the ground.

As stunned as he was from her confession, Yuki was touched more by the sincerity of it. He knew she'd probably had romantic feelings for him since even before her last request, but with how desperate things had become in the few months leading up to the final battle with Nyx, he was never able to find out for sure… but no small amount of uncertainty on his part helped the situation, either. It would be difficult enough trying to maintain a relationship with someone when the fate of the world was at stake, even more so with someone as carefree as Elizabeth, but when she had requested that their dates come to an end, he put it out of his mind and focused on other aspects of life. Then, he'd given his life to protect the people he cared about, Elizabeth included, and now she was here telling him that she had spent all this time trying to bring him back. He leaned forward and wrapped his arms around her, smiling when she enthusiastically returned the hug. "That means a lot to me, Elizabeth. Thank you." He knew she hadn't told him everything, but that was okay. A lot had already happened in one day, and there would be enough time later to figure things out.

~A Few Hours Later~

After their talk, Yuki started planning on how he was going to get in contact with his old friends.

Mitsuru owned an entire corporation, so she wouldn't be hard too hard to find, but she would be hard to contact since he would have trouble explaining to a secretary that he was a dearly departed friend back from the grave. Akihiko was probably still boxing and if was as good now as he was before, he was probably doing it professionally. All Yuki had to do was type his and Mitsuru's name into a search bar and he would most likely know what they were up to. The rest posed a problem, however; Junpei, Yukari, and Fuuka hadn't decided on a career path before his death, and they most likely wouldn't have picked one that would put them in the public eye too often anyways. Ken was most likely in college, and Aigis was probably with Mitsuru. As uncertain as he was about meeting his friends, he had no idea how Aigis was going to react to seeing him alive after all this time. He'd pretty much died in her arms while she was promising to stay by his side for as long as she could, there was no way a simple, "Long time no see!" was going to cover things. But at the same time, he didn't feel the need to apologize; he wanted to save the people he cared about, even if it meant leaving them behind.

"At the tone, the time will be midnight."

Yuki turned away from the desk he was sitting at to look at the television set Elizabeth had turned on earlier. While he had been planning, the former elevator attendant had asked him a myriad of questions and wondered aloud at the world of television. Three sequential tones played, followed by a fourth longer, deeper, tone that lasted longer. Yuki let go of the breath he'd been holding in. _"I'm glad the Dark Hour didn't come back with me."_ Of course, he knew it wouldn't, that's why he wasn't worried and why he wasn't waiting for midnight. Once the tension faded, he stood up and yawned, then took off his school jacket and top, followed by his shoes and socks. Elizabeth pulled her off her boots, socks, hat and her gloves, then lay down after Yuki pulled the covers back.

Before he could turn off the T.V. however, an advertisement began playing that caught his attention.

"_An all new, never before seen trailer will be showing at the Phoenix Ranger Featherman convention next week! It's not too late to buy your V.I.P. ticket and meet the Pink Argus herself, Yukari Takeba! But you had better hurry! Your time is running out now! Only 200,000 Yen!"_

Yuki was floored, staring at the commercial showing his friend doing stylish poses while wearing the costume of the Pink Argus. He had no idea how to react, so he just stared slack jawed for a moment until the commercial went off and his senses returned to him.

"Are you looking for the power button? It's on the right." Elizabeth offered.

"That's not it." He said, turning the T.V. off and turning around with a smile. "I have a plan."


	3. Reuniting With Yukari

The next couple of days dealt with mundane things. First, Yuki decided that a necessary shopping trip was in order. After leaving the hotel and heading into town to open a new account at the bank (and using his overflowing charm to convince the lady there that the 1994 birthdate on his school I.D. was just a prank his school friends had played on him and to ignore the large deposit), he and Elizabeth went to the mall to find new clothes first. She stood out with her unusual appearance and Yuki didn't feel like wearing the same uniform he'd died in, so they visited the various stores in Paulownia Mall looking for clothes. As much as he had expected Elizabeth to come back with costumes not meant for everyday wear or scandalous, ridiculous clothing that would get her more odd looks than her normal outfit, she had mostly stuck to normal types of shirts, skirts, and pants. Aside from the lack of any colour other than blue, he mostly liked what he saw. But as he scanned his girlfriend up and down, he noticed something. "Mmm… I think you should lose the hat."

Elizabeth's eyes drifted upward. "But I'm so used to wearing one." She mumbled as she hesitantly took it off, gripping it tightly in front of her with both hands. "Do you really think I look better like this?"

He reached up and smoothed her hair with one hand. "Without a doubt." Yuki smiled widely as he nodded.

"Thank you." She responded with a small smile of her own, letting her arms drop to her side. "What do we need to purchase next?"

"Small stuff. Toothbrushes, shampoo, deodorant, that sort of thing. When we finish with that, we need to get phones, and then we can go back to the hotel. I'll buy the V.I.P. tickets there and then we can buy train tickets in the morning. As long as nothing goes wrong, we'll be out of Port Island by tomorrow afternoon." He explained. "There is one thing I want to check on; follow me." After paying for their new clothes, he led Elizabeth back to the entrance. "Wait here for a moment." Elizabeth nodded and sat their bags down, and Yuki walked over to the police outlet and went inside. "Excuse me." He addressed the officer behind the counter. "Does Officer Kurusawa still work here?"

"No. He retired about four years ago." Was the gruff response he got back.

"Oh… I see, thank you." Yuki left, putting his hands in his pockets as he looked at the ground in front of him. _"He was old ten years ago, so I guess that makes sense."_ He thought to himself. He walked over to Elizabeth who was standing and staring into the mall, and tilted his head a little bit. "Elizabeth?" She didn't respond, and he frowned and waved a hand in front of her face. "Earth to Elle-p, hellooooo? Elizabeth!" He raised his voice a little and stepped in front of Elizabeth, a concerned look on his face as he gripped both of her shoulders. "Why aren't you answering me?"

Elizabeth looked at him like she was only now aware that he was in front of her. "They're there…" She muttered, looking past Yuki. "My siblings…"

Yuki turned around, but saw only a couple of normal people giving them strange looks. Then he saw what Elizabeth must have been referring to; the way into the back area of the mall where the Velvet Room had been. "Is the room still back there? Do you want to-" That's when he felt it, an ominous force like nothing he'd ever experienced before pulling at him, as though it was trying to draw him in. He started walking forwards without realizing it, until he was pulled off balance when Elizabeth grabbed his hand and started pulling him back.

"Let's go." She barely stopped to grab their bags of clothes before they bolted out of the mall together.

They ran all the way back to the train station and boarded the first one back into the city, ignoring the looks they had received. Yuki took a seat, panting as he asked, "What was that? Did you say that was your siblings?"

Elizabeth sat across from him with a despondent sigh. "I'm afraid it was. It seems they've finally come to take me back." At his confused look, she cleared her throat. "Do you remember how I told you I abandoned my duties? There are consequences to doing such a thing. I'm not human, nor a natural part of your world. Staying here without purpose is forbidden for one such as myself." She paused and looked away, drumming her fingers against her thigh. "I think my siblings left me alone because they assumed I would return once I had found a way to free you. But now that you've returned, they've been ordered by my master to bring me back." She said softly. "I have no intention of returning right now. Honestly, the thought alone makes me fear for my life. But the day will come when I am forced to confront them, and I'm not sure what will happen then…"

Yuki swallowed hard, unsure how to comfort Elizabeth. _"I don't know anything about her siblings. Or Igor, or what it's like to be a ruler of power like Elizabeth is. I guess they would have a hard time understanding Elizabeth's motivations without her experience."_ He took a deep breath, causing Elizabeth to look at him. "I suppose they'll follow us until you give up and go back… But that doesn't matter. If you say you're not going with them, then you're not going with them. We'll do everything in our power to help you live your life."

"...'We'll'?"

"Yeah! Me, Yukari, Mitsuru, everyone! We saved the world from Nyx after all, so surely we can save you from your family trying to uh- take you back to the other side." He wanted to avoid the word 'kidnapping' even though that's almost certainly the category it would fall under. "I guess we should get out of Port Island sooner rather than later. If your siblings know you're here, then it won't take them very long to find us.

~A Few Hours Later, Elsewhere~

"Hey, Ms. Takeba! Good news! Someone's actually bought those V.I.P. tickets for the convention!"

Yukari sighed and looked up from her magazine. "Someone always ends up falling for that scam, and never a nice, polite kid. It's always a thirty year old loser who watches shows meant for children or children whose rich parents think they own me because they bought a ticket… It's not anyone from the blacklist is it?" She asked, crossing one leg over the other.

"Uh, nope!" Her manager answered. "And hey, you're in luck! No thirty year old weirdo or snobby kids! A girl named Elizabeth… Uh, no surname, that's weird, and a guy named Yuki Makoto. Looks like they're both in high school-"

"What did you just say!?" Yukari stood up and crossed the distance between them so quickly that her manager didn't even have time to react until her phone had been swiped away. "It can't be… It's just a coincidence, someone with the same name, it can't be…" Yukari suddenly felt dizzy and nearly fell to her knees if it hadn't been for the support of her manager. "The home address on the payment… is Gekkoukan High… It can't be…" Yukari stood up slowly, letting her manager guide her to a nearby chair so she could sit down.

"Uh… Alright, I'll cancel this purchase and add them to the-"

"No, don't!" Yukari quickly cut off her manager. "I just- wasn't expecting to see my step brother's name on this list. You know, my mom remarried when I was in high school and it was to a single father so, you know-" Yukari forced out a laugh to hopefully make the lie seem make believable and rolled her hand in the air. She cleared her throat and then said in a calmer tone, "It's fine, really. I need to call my mom and let know that I'm not gonna be surprised by this. Can you give me a minute?" The moment her manager left, Yukari pulled her phone out and began looking up anything related to ten years ago popping up again; victims of apathy syndrome, people going missing, anything strange in Port Island, but she wasn't finding anything relevant. She hesitated for a moment, before swallowing her nervousness and calling Mitsuru. It didn't ring, instead going straight to voicemail.

"You've reached the voicemail of Mitsuru Kirijo. Please direct business calls to my assistant. If you are making a personal call, please-"

Yukari hung up before the recording could finish, resting her head in her hands. _"What am I doing?"_ She asked herself. _"I'm getting ahead of myself. What if it's not him? I'd worry Mitsuru for nothing, and drag up a bunch of bad memories…"_ Yukari sat up and shook her head. _"Now's no time to get rattled. I have a convention to be at soon, and I have to be ready for it. There's going to be over a thousand people there, I can't afford to fret over just one!"_

~A Few Days Later~

Yuki and Elizabeth had found another hotel to stay at after the long days of travel, although this one of much nicer variety than the previous one due to it being much closer to a convention. After settling in, Elizabeth noticed that Yuki was studying his phone intently and asked, "What are you doing?"

"I'm reading Yukari's wikipedia page." He answered back, turning around but keeping his gaze on his phone. "I wanted to find a way to break the ice with her after so much time has passed, so I looked up how long she's been doing the whole Pink Featherman thing. For quite a while, it turns out." He held up his phone and began reading out loud the information on his screen. "She started doing modeling in college but she still kept with her archery, and she was scouted out to perform in the role. She's done the T.V. show for the last six years, some live action plays, a musical- ugh, a couple of movies, voice acting for cartoons, she's an action figure, and she's also been in movies and T.V. and stuff outside of the Featheman Rangers. Apparently, she's the second most popular Pink Featherman ever according to a recent poll, but the most popular of the current cast, and- what are you doing?" He stopped as he saw Elizabeth striking a pose while standing on the bed.

"Velvet Blue, at your service!" She declared triumphantly. "Fate itself cannot even stand against me!"

Yuki stared at her silently for a moment, then slowly stood up from his chair, setting his phone the desk behind him.

"And her partner, the Sapphire Magician, Master of Strings! My music will blow you away!"

Elizabeth grinned as Yuki struck a pose of his own, like he was holding a guitar, but both of them stumbled when a voice yelled through the wall, "The con isn't until tomorrow!"

"Sorry!" They yelled back, then looked at each other and started laughing.

Once their laughter subsided, Yuki put his coat on and grabbed his phone off the table. "Let's go get dinner. We can go somewhere else after that, so we aren't stuck in the hotel room all night."

Elizabeth nodded, and they left their room and made their way outside. "I must say, I am very excited to meet your friends. When we first started spending time together all those years ago, I became more and more invested in your personal life rather than your world as a whole, but I neglected to ask to meet your friends, which seems a little counter intuitive considering how vital a role they played in all aspects of your life. I only saw them once very briefly after your death when they appeared in the Velvet Room, so I do not know much about them. What else can you tell me about Yukari?"

"Wait, when did my friends go into the Velvet Room?" Yuki asked, looking at Elizabeth shocked.

"Hmm… I believe your friends will be able to tell you more about that than I could." She answered after a moment of thought. "They were all dealing with the aftermath of Tartarus disappearing when my master called Aigis into the room, and your friends were all transported along with her." Elizabeth put a finger to her chin and muttered more to herself than to Yuki, "I wonder if they will remember me… They _were_ more concerned with Aigis at the time, and they were only present for a few minutes, plus I didn't speak to them myself, so I doubt it." She shrugged, dropping her hand and lacing her fingers with Yuki's. "Regardless, I will do my best to forge a strong bond with each of them, just like you did."

Yuki chuckled. "Well, don't come on too strong with Yukari. She's more about slowly and steadily building a relationship with others. She won't tell you anything incredibly personal and she won't respond well to those types of questions, either. She's not the type to make small talk with strangers, either. I think the best way to get along with her is to just be honest. She can be a bit hard to read sometimes, but she isn't going to be incredibly rude to someone she's just met. Unless you give her a reason to." Yuki blinked, wondering why he was feeling butterflies in his stomach. _"I guess this is what it's like introducing a girlfriend to your family and friends for the first time…"_ He thought to himself. _"And it's also a little strange considering Elizabeth isn't exactly normal."_ He sighed and rolled his shoulders. _"But it doesn't matter. Elizabeth might come off as a little strange at first, but she's still a very genuine person. Once the others see that, I'm sure that we'll all get along."_ He nodded and smiled a little, slowing to a stop as he pointed across the street. "There's a restaurant. Let's go there."

Dinner passed mostly without incident, aside from the fact that Elizabeth ordered an absurd amount of food for herself ("I haven't tried this or this or that" she explained to the horrified chef) and ate it _all_, shocking all onlookers in the vicinity. After dinner, they walked around town, Yuki listening to and answering Elizabeth's musings and questions as she stopped to look at a myriad of things in shop windows. The sun was already sinking when they had left, but when they returned to the hotel, it was well after dark and the crescent moon was visible in the sky. After switching into pajamas and bidding each other goodnight, Yuki turned out the lights and closed his eyes.

_"Tomorrow's the day. I hope everything goes okay."_

~The Next Day~

"Are you alright, Ms. Takeba? I don't think I've ever seen you so unfocused."

Yukari took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. She was staring at the door leading to the backstage area, having just finished a Q&A with her fans and admittedly not having done a good job. The anticipation had been building up for days, she had been staying up till midnight with evoker in hand in case the Dark Hour suddenly occurred again, and now the moment of truth was finally here.

She opened the door and stepped through it, and her gaze was immediately drawn to the head of blue hair that stood out against the otherwise not so colorful room. A deafening silence filled the room as Yukari went numb from the realization. It felt like the wind had been knocked out of her as she stood there in complete disbelief at the sight in front of her. Yukari tried to say something, but her voice had abandoned her, and it wasn't until Yuki turned to face her fully and gave a small smile did she finally manage to get out, "I didn't think it was possible… I- I saw the name, but I thought there was no way…" She took a step forward, nearly staggering as she closed the distance between them and reached out to place her hands on Yuki's shoulder. "Is it really you?"

"It's nice to see you again, Yukari."

Yuki smiled and Yukari laughed upon hearing her old friends voice again, pulling him into a tight hug as she slumped against him, all the energy leaving her, the anxiety and worry and fear, everything but that small spark of hope that she would _actually_ be seeing her friend again. "It's really you!" She cried out, burying her face into his neck and hugging him tighter as all the memories from ten years ago came rushing to the front of her mind. Tears started rolling down her face as she broke down, repeating over and over again, "You're really here! You're okay!" She stayed like that for several minutes, clinging to Yuki until she pulled back and turned away to wipe away at the tear tracks on her cheeks. Her manager had politely excused herself after Yukari asked for a moment alone with Yuki, and after taking a moment to compose herself, she turned back around to face Yuki and they sat down across from each other. Yukari wasn't sure what to say, but eventually cleared her throat and decided on, "So, how are you feeling now that you've… returned? No amnesia, dizziness, insomnia, anything like that?"

Yuki laughed. "Nope, nothing like that. I feel perfectly normal; I get hungry, I get sleepy, bored, all that stuff. The only strange thing I can think of _is_ that I can't think of anything unusual."

"I see… And, who's this?" Yukari, turning towards Elizabeth.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Elizabeth, and I once was an elevator attendant, although I haven't taken care of my duties in at least a decade." Elizabeth said, dipping her head politely.

Yukari raised a brow in confusion, then turned towards Yuki for a clearer answer.

"She's… Do you remember how I would occasionally go and get new Persona's whenever we went into Tartarus?" Yukari nodded, and Yuki gestured to Elizabeth. "Well, she helped with that whole process. She's not human, she's from a place called the Velvet Room."

"She's not human?" Yukari gave a closer look at Elizabeth. "But she looks normal to me…"

"But I don't look familiar? We have met once before." When Yukari gave her a bewildered look, Elizabeth stood and snapped her fingers. She was enveloped in a white light that lasted for a few seconds and when it faded, she was back in her Velvet Room attire. "Perhaps this look will jog your memory?"

"Woah!" Yukari exclaimed. She might've seen some crazy stuff in her day, but what Elizabeth had just demonstrated was something only a special effects team could do in post production. "Was that magic?"

"Yes, but hardly anything noteworthy. A simple change of clothes without undressing is far from what I am capable of." Elizabeth boasted.

"Hey, now that you mention it…" It was hard to grasp onto, but Yukari was remembering something. "You were with an old man in a blue room, right?" When Elizabeth nodded, Yukari said, "Yeah, we had just defeated Erebus, and the old guy said he was saying goodbye to Aigis, but we all ended up that Velvet Room, too."

"Yes, Aigis' journey had ended and you were free from the Abyss of Time, so just as my master had done for Yuki, he wanted to give a proper goodbye to Aigis as well."

"Speaking of this whole 'Abyss of Time' thing, can you tell me more about what happened?" Yuki asked.

Yukari nodded and explained the aftermath of Tartarus' disappearance and how they discovered Erebus and the truth behind Yuki's death. There was a pregnant pause in which everyone stared at the ground before Yukari spoke up. "I don't want to sour the mood, but if you're here, does that mean Nyx and Erebus are free to make contact with each other?"

"...Yes, but…" Yuki took a deep breath and explained how Nyx said that Erebus was gone for good, that he could leave whenever he wanted and that Yuki could return to being the seal at any time. "Plus, I've been back for a week and neither of us have noticed anything strange." He finished, looking towards Elizabeth.

"It's true. If something was threatening all of mankind on the scale of Nyx, I would have felt something."

Yukari sighed, then let her shoulders drop. "Okay, well…" She went silent for a moment and then pulled out her phone. "I guess we should let everyone else know that you're alive again." She giggled. "Let me guess, you came to me first because you were watching T.V. and saw me on the show, didn't you?"

"A commercial for the convention, actually. " Yuki said with a laugh. "How is everyone? What are they all up to these days?"

"Well, Junpei teaches little league… Akihiko is still boxing, Ken is going to college to become a veterinarian, Fuuka runs a small clinic in an equally small town, and Aigis works with Mitsuru to fight against Shadows wherever they pop up." She explained. "I was actually going to tell Mitsuru the moment I saw your name on that ticket purchase, but decided I would wait in case it was some kind if extreme coincidence. But now that I know it's really you… Give me a moment." Yukari walked to the other side of the room while she called Mitsuru again, this time leaving a voicemail explaining everything, and then asking the CEO to get Akihiko and Aigis together and to have them all meet together. "Oh, one more thing- don't tell Junpei, Ken, or Fuuka. I want to surprise them. I'll take a picture with Yuki and send it so you know I'm serious."

While Yukari was busy with her phone call, Elizabeth rested her head on Yuki's shoulder. "I wonder if I, too, looked that distraught when I first saw you after all those years."

Yuki snorted and turned his head to give Elizabeth a small kiss on the forehead. "You looked awful." He confirmed, causing Elizabeth to gasp indignantly. "But don't worry, I'll bet Junpei looks the worst out of everyone." He said with a laugh.

"Speaking of Stupei…" Yukari got their attention and they both turned towards her, "He doesn't live too far from here, just a few hours by plane. "Let's go!"

~The End~

A/N

Review or I'm gonna hack your phone and you won't be able to do anything except play Raid: Shadow Legends on it


	4. The Gang Go To Meet Junpei

Yukari took Yuki and Elizabeth out to dinner at an expensive restaurant that night, and from the moment after telling her manager she would be taking an extended vacation to deal with a 'sudden family emergency', she began talking to Yuki and Elizabeth, telling them stories from her last year at Gekkoukan High, what her days at college had been like, all the new friends she made and the professors who had been more fun than the others, meeting her manager after doing small modeling jobs and finally what the world of being a T.V. star was like. While Yukari happily talked to her old S.E.E.S. friends about her life regularly, she found it a little strange how she was reciting so much of her past all at once, probably because it was the first time she'd done so for anybody. But it didn't matter, because after years of praying for a miracle, of waking up every morning with the thought of hearing good news instead of 'what could have been' in her mind, of all the regret and pain fading as she slowly recovered as time moved on, she was finally reunited with Yuki. And in her own opinion, the timing couldn't have been better: a few years earlier and she might've been too emotional to connect with him right away, and a few years later and she might have changed too much to connect with him at all… in fact, Yuki had already asked a few questions regarding some of her stories that she realized made sense to her but not to him.

By the time they arrived at Yuki's hotel, Yukari's voice was scratchy, she was short of breath, and she was about ready to go back to her own hotel and get some rest, but there was still one last thing she had to ask. "Hey Elizabeth, can you give me and Yuki a moment?" The ex-elevator attendant nodded and went on ahead, heading into the hotel while Yuki and Yukari stayed outside. Yuki turned to Yukari and saw that she was giving him a knowing smirk, with both hands on her hips. "I saw you two holding hands all night; wanna tell me what the deal is?" She leaned forward and her smirk widened as Yuki scratched his cheek, a blush forming that was just barely visible in the light of the nearby streetlamps.

Yuki cleared his throat and shrugged. "Well, there's not much to tell, honestly: we're a couple. We spent a lot of time together before I died, and we both developed feelings for each other during that time… so when I came back and she confessed to me, I accepted and we're together now." He finished with a smile and another shrug.

Yukari crossed her arms over her chest and raised her brow. "Spent time together? I was under the impression she had to stay in the Velvet Room with that old guy. Did the three of you have lunch together everytime you wanted to fuse a Persona or something?"

"No, no- I took her out and showed her around Port Island." Yuki looked up at the sky, where the crescent moon shone overhead. His eye followed a plane that was visible against the darkness of space and said a little more quietly, "To tell you the truth, I was a little embarrassed at first. She had no idea how to act in public, and misunderstood a lot of basic stuff that we learned as kids. But afterwards, I thought it was endearing how she ran from shop to shop and asked questions about fashion or knick knacks or whatever else she wanted to know more about. Then I realized after I took her back to the Velvet Room that she spent so much time stuck in there with nothing to do, and I figured I'd be the exact same way if the situation was reversed, so when she asked me to take her out again, I was actually looking forward to it just as much as she was. It even got to the point where I _wanted_ to go to the Velvet Room just to see her, because she was always excited to see me." He exhaled through his nose and stuffed his hands in his pockets. "It was a lot of fun showing her around, because she was a lot of fun to talk to." He looked back down to see Yukari smiling gently at him. "What?"

"I'm glad you two are happy." Yukari answered softly with a small, honest smile. "I don't know her that well, and I don't know if that relationship dynamic would work for me, but you two seem happy together, so that's all that matters." Yukari laced her fingers together at the small of her back and tapped at the ground with a toe while she thought, _"I don't think I've seen him talk about anybody like that before…"_

"Thanks. I'm glad I have your approval." Yuki replied with a small chuckle.

Yukari called a taxi and while she waited for it to arrive, told Yuki that she would be buying tickets to Junpei's town and that she'd call him in the morning. When her cab arrived, she gave Yuki one last hug and then walked to her ride, then stopped as she opened the door and turned back to Yuki as she realized something. "You and Elizabeth _are_ in different rooms, right?"

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...I'm 27, Yukari, I don't need permission to share a hotel room with a girl."

He turned around, barely in time to hide his poorly concealed laughter as he hurried up the stairs. For a moment, he thought Yukari might have given chase, but he only heard her give a shocked yell before he was in the hotel lobby. He cleared his throat when he saw the woman behind the front desk giving him a disapproving look, then calmly made his way upstairs back to his room. When he walked in, Elizabeth had changed into a navy blue nightgown and was leaning against the headboard. "Did you have a pleasant chat?" She asked as Yuki started changing into his own night clothes.

"She just wanted to ask what kind of relationship we had since she saw us holding hands." He said, climbing in next to Elizabeth and pulling the covers up.

"And… what did you tell her?"

Elizabeth sounded nervous, and Yuki was quick to respond. "That we were together- a romantic couple." Elizabeth's shoulders slowly fell as she nodded once. "I know it's not exactly a normal relationship, but I am happy with you." He continued, placing both hands on her shoulders. "As long as you want to be with me, I'll always be here for you."

Elizabeth smiled, and she raised a hand to gently cup Yuki's cheek. It was such a small thing, foregoing gloves, but it came with a great reward; there was one less layer between her and her love. Yuki leaned forward to kiss Elizabeth, who couldn't hold back a soft moan at the action- barring the hand holding and waking up to Yuki's arm around her waist, there wasn't as much physical contact as Elizabeth was craving after waiting ten years to reunite with Yuki. But she was determined to hold back, wait until Yuki was comfortable with his return to the land of the living before she tried to initiate anything like they had done in his dorm room so long ago. So when he pulled back, Elizabeth didn't try to follow him or pull him back in. She _did_ rest her head on his chest after he turned the lights out and lay down, however, but Yuki didn't seem to mind.

As Elizabeth raised her hand to rest over his heart, he let his drift shut and let the silence settle over them as he started to fall asleep.

He blinked when he felt Elizabeth's warmth vanish, and his stomach dropped when he took in his surroundings.

"Welcome to the Velvet Room. It has been quite some time, hasn't it?"

Yuki was once again sitting across from Igor, only this time there were three other people with him as well. Yellow eyes, white hair, blue uniforms; he could deduce pretty easily who these new people were.

"Allow me to make proper introductions." Igor extended one hand to the tallest of the trio, a woman who looked young yet quite mature, and was giving him a cold, unsympathetic stare. "This is my assistant, Margaret." He motioned to the young man, who gave him a polite nod and small bow. "This is my assistant, Theodore." He motioned to the young girl, who had both hands on her hips and was glowering at him, although it came across more pouty than anything else. "And this is my assistant, Lavenza. As you might have guessed, they are all residents of this Velvet Room." Igor put his hands together and rested his chin on top of them. "However, one of our residents has been missing for far too long, and now refuses to return."

Yuki stiffened, and after a moment of carefully choosing his words said, "She's not ready to return yet."

Margaret stepped forward and closed about half the distance between, looking down at Yuki where he was sitting. "It's not about whether she's ready to return or not. Elizabeth is not human, and so she cannot ever truly be a part of humanity, no matter how much time she spends on your side. Eventually, humankind will become aware that something unnatural is among them and they will hunt Elizabeth down to either kill her or study her. And you're familiar with what happened the last time humanity attempted to interact with an entity so far removed from it."

Images of the Dark Hour flashed through his mind, and Yuki shook his head. "Nyx and Elizabeth are two totally different kinds of entities, and Elizabeth is far less of a threat than Nyx is. And she's not a threat to anyone in the first place! The only reason someone would get hurt because of her is if they threatened her first." Yuki stood up, and Margaret narrowed her gaze at him. "Look, I know Elizabeth can stand out, but I knew that when I invited her to come with me after we first reunited. And even if I have to spend my entire life trying to help her fit in, if she doesn't want to come back here then she doesn't have to. She might not be human, but she has a right to make her own choices in life."

"Didn't you hear what Margaret just said?" Lavenza raised her voice and rushed forward. "Elizabeth doesn't have a choice! Standing out is dangerous for her! She's been attending her duty for millenia, and she doesn't get to just quit whenever she develops feelings for a guest! This is why such things are forbidden in the first place, because of how much trouble it causes!"

Before Yuki could respond, Theodore stepped forward as well, a sympathetic look on his face in contrast to both of his sisters. "Mr. Makoto, we're merely looking out for Elizabeth's best interests. We aren't supposed to spend decades at a time in your world, and we aren't supposed to interfere in the natural order of life and death, either." He raised a hand to cut off Yuki's protest. "Even though she was not responsible for your return, she left in search of that goal all the same, and that was after only a single year with you. Imagine what will happen if she spends decades at your side, never aging or changing- how will she react when you've lived out the normal human lifespan and cannot go on any longer? You chose your fate of your own free will, but Elizabeth would not accept that- but no one can escape death forever, and no matter how long she has to come to terms with it, our sister may not ever accept the inevitability of mortalkind."

Yuki paused, taking a moment to collect his thoughts- and to digest what Theodore was telling him. While Margaret and Lavenza both focused on Elizabeth's rebellion, Theodore had managed to hit much closer to home with the image of an unchanged Elizabeth sitting being forced to take care of him as an old man as his strength failed him and he had to rely on others more and more. He glanced between the four residents and sighed. "Even though Elizabeth and I will be forced to part one day-" He took a breath and steeled himself, clenching his fists as he looked Igor in the eye- "I won't let you take Elizabeth until she's ready to return on her own. I want to have her at my side for as long as possible."

Silence settled between the occupants of the room. The owner of the Velvet Room didn't blink, sigh, or react in any notable way, his expression unchanging as always. Even though Yuki could feel the other assistants staring at him, he kept his gaze on Igor, unwilling to show any signs of weakness or uncertainty. After an eternally long moment of stillness, Igor's hands came down to rest on the table, the elderly man letting out a quiet sigh as he did so. "If this is the path you two intend to take, then you two will have to accept the consequences of it as well. The longer Elizabeth's rebellion goes on, the more severe those consequences will become as a result. Do not say you were not warned." Igor raised his hand. "That is all." With a flick of his wrist, darkness swept of Yuki.

For a terrifying moment, he wasn't sure what would happen next, but his eyes opened and he saw the ceiling of his hotel room, the morning sunlight filtering in slightly from behind the closed curtain. He felt hand playing with his own, a light touch dragging across his knuckles and idly tracing the lines on his palm. He turned and Elizabeth gave him a cheerful smile. "Good morning!" She stood up from the bed and placed her hands on her hips. "Shall we get a head start on our day?"

Yuki groaned as he sat up. His head seemed fuzzy, the all too familiar effect of sleep deprivation making itself known as he recalled the many mornings after exploring Tartarus. He rubbed at his eyes, the memory of his dream still crystal clear in his mind as he stood up and stretched. "Have you been up all night?" He asked as he meandered around the room, grabbing everything he needed to take into the shower with him.

"More or less. I don't actually need to sleep, so I tend to avoid doing so whenever possible in case of an emergency." She answered. "But I did close my eyes for a little while while I waited for sunrise." At Yuki's stillness and silence, she tilted her head. "Are you alright? Perhaps you ate too much before bed and had a nightmare."

"I don't think it had anything to with dinner last night…" He sighed. "I'll tell you about it later. I still need to finish waking up." He stepped into the bathroom and closed the door behind him. "If Yukari calls, let her know I'm in here!"

~Later~

"I see." Elizabeth had just finished listening to Yuki's experience in the Velvet Room, and the two were currently in the restaurant on the ground floor in the hotel. "I truly regret that you had the misfortune to meet my younger brother. Please, do not hesitate to bully him in the future if you should be pulled into the Velvet Room once again."

"I'm not sure that was the important takeaway from all of that…"

Elizabeth giggled. "Fret not, I was merely giving a small modicum of advice. As for what my master- former master said…" She hummed and drummed her fingers on the table for a moment before continuing. "I knew that that there would be repercussions for this selfish journey when I started it. Taking mankind's saviour for myself and leaving a greater burden of responsibility on my siblings- I know that one day I will be forced to take responsibility for my actions. And no matter what punishment my ma-former master comes up with, I assure you, I can handle it. I am a lot stronger than I appear." She started tapping the ends of her index fingers together and mumbled, "But I consider myself blessed by the powers higher than myself for every extra day I get to spend with you. Even though there is a great difference in our lifespans, I can bear the burden of solitude once you've truly passed on if we've lived our lives to the fullest- together." She reached across the table and took his hands, giving them a light squeeze.

Yuki felt the heat rise to his face and ducked his head to hide his smile. Elizabeth was always honest and genuine when she spoke, even when she was being naive and misunderstanding something that she was encountering for the first time, and it was in direct contrast to Yuki, who'd spent his life closed off from everyone around him as he bounced between relatives, schools, and cities all over Japan. He tried to find the right words to say back but nothing came out, so he kept his gaze on the tabletop, returning Elizabeth's gesture with a small squeeze of his own.

"Awww, that was adorable."

The pair looked up to see Yukari standing a few feet away.

"Seriously, what an adorable speech." Yukari snickered and covered her mouth with one hand. "_I can live with the consequences, as long as we're together!_ What, are you on a daytime television drama or something?" She sighed and shrugged. "I had no idea you were into that kind of thing, Yuki."

The young man frowned and pulled back from Elizabeth. "Didn't you just say last night that you were happy for us?"

"I am, but that doesn't mean I can't give you a hard time about it." She grinned. "Come on you two, go check out if you haven't already and let's get going."

~A Few Hours Later~

Junpei took a deep breath, tapping his foot in impatience and nervousness as he took a small sip from the teacup in front of him. Tea was far from his thing, but the bottled water from the cafe where Yukari had asked to meet him at was too expensive, and he was cutting sodas out of his diet little by little to try and stay in shape. He exhaled slowly, trying to calm his nerves as he looked at the entrance to the cafe for the twentieth time in five minutes. It was strange for anyone from the shadow operatives that wasn't Mitsuru to contact him, much less with a 'surprise that he would love' in Yukari's own words, and definitely not with a cafe date for just the two of them. He took another sip of his tea and rested his chin on top of his hands, his gaze shadowed by the cap on his head. _"I'm over thinking this… There's no way she's asking for what I think she's asking for. She just wants to hang out and catch up with an old friend without a life threatening situation hanging over our head like normal… I'm just reading way too much into this."_

"_Okay, but consider the following-"_ Another voice in his head piped up. _"Your childhood friend and you go on an adventure to save the world in your youth, then as the years go by, you slowly drift apart. You live the honest life, teaching kids how to play baseball in a small town. She goes on to become a model and famous actress in the big city, and the two of you only get in contact when people are in danger, and never for very long. You live a fulfilling life, but you know you're missing something. She stops being dazzled by the cameras and the audience and wants to reconnect with someone real. Then one day, completely out of the blue, you get a call from her, asking to meet an out-of-the-way cafe. What do you make of that?"_

"_I already have Chidori. Yukari's not my type."_ He clutched at the gothic necklace that hung from his neck, the only thing that stood out against his otherwise casual appearance.

"_Chidori's not going anywhere. She'll be with you always, a bright memory to stand out against the darkness you faced back then. But she's not going to come back just because you remember her fondly, either. Do you really want to turn around as an old man and go, 'I could have had a wife, children, and grandchildren, but I chose to stay stuck in the past forever instead of looking towards the present'? There's no shame in moving on with your life while remembering the good times you once had."_

"_That's true, but… Yuka-tan? Of all people?"_

"_Doesn't it make sense because it makes the least amount of sense?"_

"...Holy crap, she asked me out on a date!" Junpei stood up so suddenly that he shook the booth and his tea spilled over the top, but most of it was caught by the saucer. He could feel everyone staring at him, and he cleared his throat awkwardly. "S-Sorry…" He mumbled and sat down. Pulling out his phone and checking the time, Junpei started bouncing his leg. He'd arrived a few minutes early since it was the weekend and he didn't have anywhere to be, but he'd been sitting here for almost twenty minutes and he was starting to wonder if maybe he'd been pranked.

Of course, just when he decided he was going to leave, the door opened and Yukari walked through, immediately striding over to Junpei and giving him a brief hug. "Long time no see, Junpei! What's it been, three years?"

Junpei cleared his throat awkwardly. "Y-yeah, give or take." For a moment he was unsure what to say, but he sat down, motioned for Yukari to do the same, reminded himself to sit up straight and asked, "So- uh… What have you been up to lately?"

"Same old, same old. But my life just got a lot more interesting, which you'll find out about in a little while." She answered, sitting down and ordering a unsweet tea off the menu when the waitress came and got her.

The two swapped stories as they continually ordered drinks and refills, spending nearly two hours asking questions, teasing, offering advice, and telling jokes about themselves and one another until Yukari cleared her throat, a solemn look on her face making Junpei pause. "Uh… what's up with the attitude shift all of a sudden?"

"Junpei…" She took a deep breath and leaned in, her voice barely above a whisper as she spoke. "What if I told you that an old friend had come back to see us?"

"Is Aigis here?" He asked. "Is this something to do with the shadow operatives?"

Yukari shook her head. "Okay, take a deep breath, because what I'm about to say isn't going to make sense but… Yuki's back. He's come back to life somehow."

Junpei scoffed immediately and rolled his eyes. "What the hell is wrong with you?" He asked, leaning back in his seat. "We both know he's gone for good. We buried his ashes and his soul is still up there holding back Nyx." He lifted a finger and pointed at the sky.

"I'm not lying!" Yukari cried out. She quickly pulled up her phone to show the picture that she'd sent Mitsuru. "I don't know how he's back or why, maybe it has something to do with his girlfriend, but he's _really_ back."

"New girlfriend?"

"Yeah." She shrugged and sighed. "I was late because she was running all over the airport because she's never been to one before."

"...I'm lost, what's that got to do with Yuki?"

"Not much. I'll let him introduce you to her but-" She stood up and Junpei followed suit, and she leaned in close to whisper, "I don't trust her completely yet. She's nice enough, but until we can actually figure out how Yuki's back and if Nyx is still a threat, then we need to keep an eye on her as much as possible."

Junpei frowned. "I still don't believe he's back."

"Then let's go see him. You'll start believing pretty quick after that." Yukari quickly payed for everything and after a short trip by cab, arrived at the hotel where Yuki and Elizabeth were staying. They were staying in the room next to her, and when she approached their door she could hear the T.V. that was turned on on the other side of the door. It had been her idea to meet Junpei first and bring him back, because she knew that if Junpei saw Yuki out in public he was liable to break down like she had and as much as she might like to tease Junpei, that was taking things too far, even for them. "He's in here." She gestured to the door.

Junpei looked at her, then frowned at the door. He exhaled and gave three loud knocks on the door, squaring his shoulders as he heard movement on the other side. Slowly the door opened, and his jaw clenched when a young man with an all too familiar shade of blue hair was revealed. "So you paid some high school kid to put on a wig." He muttered back to Yukari. "It's not him. And you've got no idea who you're dressed up as, do you?" He said with an accusatory jab at Yuki. Maybe anger wasn't the right response, but Yukari suddenly showing up out of nowhere with a dearly departed friend returned from the grave didn't leave him with a lot of emotional options, and he wasn't known for his cool head.

"Myself?"

Even ten years later, Junpei would recognize that voice anywhere. The sarcastic response broke through everything else, and Junpei's eyes widened. "There's no way… Is it really you?" He grabbed Yuki by the shoulder, and the other young man just nodded and tried to come up with something more original to say than 'hey'. Junpei was still completely in shock, and reached forward to pinch Yuki on the arm without really realizing it.

"Ow! What was that for?" Yuki asked.

Junpei tried to answer, but he just opened and closed his mouth over and over again. What in the world was he supposed to say to someone he thought he'd never see again?

"Perhaps the gorilla has his tongue. No, that's not it. The Tarantula? Alligator?"

"None of those were close." Yukari muttered.

"Well, let me take this moment to introduce you to Elizabeth." Yuki stood aside and let Junpei and Yukari into his room.

Elizabeth stood up from the desk in the room and strode over to Junpei. "My name is Elizabeth, but feel free to call me Elle-p. I am Yuki's girlfriend." She blushed when she said that, and Yuki just chuckled when Junpei turned to him. "I suppose now is the time to answer questions before we go out to celebrate, correct?"

Junpei plopped down onto the bed, letting out a long sigh as he shook his head. "Yeah, because I've got a lot."

~Later~

"So, you're free from the seal because Erebus is gone for good, huh?" Junpei crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. "And you and Elizabeth were 'seeing each other' way back when, she's not human and went on a journey to save you, and now you're here."

"That sums it up." Yuki replied with a nod.

"So like, what are you gonna do now?"

Yukari looked at Junpei and Yuki blinked. "Now?"

"I mean like, in the future and all that. I'm glad you're here, don't get me wrong-" He waved his hands quickly, "But are you going to… to go to college or something like that?"

Yuki snorted, and Yukari tried to hide her laughter. "What kind of question is that?" Yuki asked. "I guess that will depend on how long I'm here. I never spent too much time thinking about college, and as everything got more and more serious I was just focused on ending the Dark Hour, then when I knew I was going to die, I just didn't worry about it and focused on making it to graduation." He explained. "I guess I was kind of hoping Mitsuru might have a job opening that I could apply to while I try to figure out the legal ramifications of coming back from the dead."

"Well, Mitsuru can probably help you on both of those fronts." Yukari stepped in. "She works with law enforcement to stop shadows just as much as she's the head of the Kirijo corporation, so I'm sure she can pull a few strings to help make your resurrection seem a little less strange. And I doubt she'd leave you out to dry after you saved the world from Nyx."

"_All of you_ saved the world from Nyx." Elizabeth interrupted. "Yuki would have had no reason to save the world if he had taken the journey alone."

"Anyways-" Yukari continued, "The sooner we get everyone together the sooner we can figure out how best to help Yuki, and Elizabeth. It might not be easy to bring someone back from the dead when they were human to begin with, but for Elizabeth…" She hesitated, looking at the ground before looking between Yuki and Elizabeth. "We might not be able to do anything particularly helpful."

"Not to worry. I'm no distressing dandelion, and I do not require many of the same needs as a normal human. Anything I would need help with, I could ask for help, either from Yuki or one of you."

"Damsel, not dandelion." Junpei corrected her. "And you can count on me!" He gave Elizabeth a thumbs up, and received a 'V for Victory" pose in return.

"I wouldn't count on him, Elle-p. Yuki's still more of an adult than Stupei is."

"Hey!"


End file.
